The UN: the Arab’s Latest Instrument of Choice for Israel’s Demise

The UN is preparing a World Conference Against Racism to begin August 30, 2001 in Durban, South Africa. If the Arab delegations have their way, the conference will be an Israel-bashing instrument which exceeds anything yet seen in the UN. The Arab delegates are preparing resolutions harsher than the 1975 UN resolution (that was repealed in 1991 after Israel was hit with scuds) that classified Zionism as a form of racism and discrimination.

"Their aim is to delegitimize the Jewish people through both the resolutions and the terminology," says Israel's Deputy Foreign Minister Michael Melchior. (Jerusalem Post, July 13, 2001)

Melchior says that much of this new anti-Semitism emanates from the Arab world where it has existed for a long time, and now is bonding with the historic roots of European anti-Semitism that spawned the anti-Semitic Crusades, the Inquisition, the pogroms in Eastern Europe and ultimately the Holocaust.

Melchior said that the new anti-Semitism is constantly intensifying and being disseminated using new technology to an increasingly wide public. Indeed, have you ever noticed that one never hears an Arab leader in any part of the world speak a single positive word about Israel? Not in the papers, radio or TV.

"In Arab countries where the people do not have access to information from the free world, the message is repeated endlessly and its impact will remain for decades. It is a poison which is being planted every day in a new generation," Melchior said, noting that the campaign is now being joined by non-Arab nations. (Ibid., June 26, 2001)

"It has a different power, a different strength than anything we've seen before," he said. There is an increasing trend on the part of human rights organizations in the West to delegitimize Zionism, the State of Israel, and the Jewish people as a whole."

The influential South African President Thabo Mbeki told Israel's Prime Minister Ariel Sharon that there was nothing he could do about the anti-Israel program being planned for the conference to be hosted by his nation. However, Secretary of State Colin Powell says he may boycott the conference if the "Zionism is Racism" push is not halted. (Ibid., July 1, 2001)

A preparatory conference for this World Conference Against Racism was held in Teheran, Iran, of all places. (Israeli military intelligence continually point out in article after article that Iran is the mother of all world terrorist sources.) In Teheran, the representatives could not come to agreement on the exact wording of the anti-Israel resolutions they wish to adopt in the South Africa conference, so they are planning another pre-conference at the end of July in Geneva.

The current Teheran draft is blatantly anti-Israel and anti-Semitic and absolutely original. In what the Institute of the World Jewish Congress calls a "stunning display of verbal acrobatics," the proposed draft says that Zionism [the return of the Jews over the last century to the Holy Land] is the same thing as anti-Semitism!

This double-talk, says Melchior, is far worse than the "Zionism equals racism" concept that the UN General Assembly passed in 1975. "In Durban," he said, "Israel is being presented as the embodiment of all evil, the antithesis of all that is worthy and humane. Israel is being portrayed as the new Antichrist."

For example, Clause 54 from the proposed texts speak of the need to combat anti-Semitism [Oh, that it would!] and Islamophobia as intrinsic to opposing all forms of racism. The draft of Clause 55 reflects deep concern at the worldwide increase in anti-Semitism and "the increase of racist practices of Zionism…as well as the emergence of racial and violent movements based on racism and discriminatory ideas, in particular, the Zionist movement, which is based on racial superiority."

Another clause states: "We are convinced that combating anti-Semitism, Islamophobia and Zionist practices against Semitism is integral and intrinsic to opposing all forms of racism…"

In Clause 25, there is a specific reference to Israeli settlement activity. In a section entitled, "Ethnic cleansing, genocide, slavery, and similar crimes," the proposed text reads: "We affirm that a foreign occupation founded on settlements, its laws based on racial discrimination, with the aim of continuing domination of the occupied territory, as well as its practices, which consist of reinforcing a total military blockage, isolating towns, cities and villages under occupation from each other, totally contradict the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and constitute a serious violation of international human rights and humanitarian law, a new kind of apartheid, a crime against humanity and a serious threat to international peace and security." (Ibid., July13, 2001)

Melchior challenges this description of settlements being crimes against humanity. "If building an apartment in Gilo [a section of Jewish Jerusalem] is a crime against humanity, then the term has no meaning," says Melchior. "One can agree or disagree regarding Israeli settlement policy. One can agree or disagree about Israeli policy in the territories. But is Israeli settlement policy really the most heinous and awful crime against humanity currently being committed on the face of the earth? If everything is a crime against humanity, then nothing is a crime against humanity."

Leftist Knesset member, Naomi Chazan, describes Israel's international relations as consisting of three circles which should be kept separate:

1. The first circle represents the government of Israel.

2. The second circle relates to the legitimization of the State of Israel and Zionism - Jews returning to their ancient homeland.

3. The third has to do with Judaism and anti-Semitism.

Chazan says the Teheran draft has combined all of these circles. Chazan accepts the legitimacy of disagreeing with any government and its policies. She says, "I am very critical of the policies of the government of Israel, but not of the legitimacy of the State of Israel or Zionism, and I cannot condone or accept attacks on Judaism." Ibid.)

Foreign Minister Shimon Peres, the ultimate optimist, says this period reminds him of the dark periods of history when the Jewish people were under threat of annihilation. "Today, Israel is the only member state of the United Nations to whose destruction three other members - Iran, Iraq, and Libya - are committed," he observed.

Along with the influence of Islam in the UN is the growing power of Europe which is very sympathetic to the Arab cause. One reason for this is that Islam is the fastest-growing religion on the European continent, and nearly 20 million people in European Union countries identify themselves as Muslims, according to an American Jewish Congress publication. (Ibid., July 13, 2001)

Furthermore, it behooves us as born-again believers throughout the world to take note of the increasing intensity of Islam's radical nationalism which is turning ever more destructive and violent. Islam is the main source of terrorism around the world.

Over the last decade, many, if not most, Israelis believed they could make peace with the Palestinians. Now it is excruciatingly clear that this has become an existential conflict where the radical Islamics want no compromise and solution. Israel must GO, completely, totally, utterly. Israel is fighting for her life.

The immediate cause of this upsurge in anti-Semitism is the ongoing intifada, [read Palestinian War Against Israel]. One source in the Foreign Ministry says it has set Israel back at least ten years. Former Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Dore Gold explains, "Weakening Israel's international position weakens Israel's negotiating position in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict."

The UN, comprising 189 nations, is an instrument that is closing in on the State of Israel. Its Arab Moslem members have tried to militarily destroy Israel for 50 years, but to no avail. Now, because of their numbers (280 million, not including the hundreds of millions of non-Arab Moslems in the world) and their billions of barrels of oil, they find that they and their friends wield great power in the UN.

Arafat wanted a freeze of all house construction in Israeli settlements written into the Oslo settlements. Having failed there, he has been able to raise the issue on the international arena through his intifada. What they couldn't achieve in the bilateral discussions [starting with the Oslo talks], they plan to achieve at the UN where Israel is at a disadvantage.

If Israel is effectively excommunicated from the international community, it would have serious political and economic implications for Israel. A pariah-like Israel would be isolated and cut off from international economic cooperation and commercial trade. For a tiny country like Israel, this would be disaster.

Jewish organizations around the world are alarmed at this resurrection of anti-Semitic attacks originating within the UN. Early in July, Melchior convened a conference in London of some 60 Jewish leaders from around the world to discuss the Teheran proposals and how best to lobby against them, and Melchior is hopeful that somehow the drafts can be changed.

So far, the U.S., Australia and Sweden, along with UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan have expressed reservations regarding the anti-Israeli bias.

We as watchmen on the walls have a real challenge before us as we intercede in behalf of Israel at this upcoming conference. As you pray for the well-being of Israel, you are also praying for the welfare of your own nation. For the Lord is not a man that He should lie. He has said of Israel, "I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you."

Could it be a Coincidence?

He who touches you touches the apple of My eye. Zech. 2:8

The United States has tried for many years to be "even-handed" as mediator between the two fighting peoples - Israel and the Palestinians. But certainly, from the Israeli perspective, the U.S. and Europe are far from being fair in their even-handedness. They are demanding of Israel standards that no other nation could or would sustain.

To the world, the Palestinian attackers and the Israeli victims have equal status. The more intense the intifada, the greater the world clamors for a brokered peace between the two fighting, equally guilty sides.

In doing so, the nations pressure Israel to see what she will offer in order to persuade the Palestinians to stop the attacks. Meanwhile, the world demands that Israel not defend herself against attacks, because "that only causes a further spiral of violence". Of course, Israelis know that the more the nations pressure Israel to placate the Palestinians, the more the Arabs will continue their offensive, as it pays well to do so.

The New King James version says that Jerusalem will be a stone that will cut in pieces whoever picks it up. Zech. 12:3

With this thought, we offer a question: Does God use natural phenomena to reveal his will and his purposes in this generation? One writer believes so and we present his views for your consideration.

In 1991, President George H. Bush initiated the Madrid Peace talks in order to try to negotiate a settlement between Israel and the Palestinians. While Bush was opening the conference in Madrid on October 31, a storm, which came to be known as "the perfect storm," struck his home in Maine.

According to meteorologists, a "perfect storm" occurs once every 100 years. This storm formed in the North Atlantic and headed west for 1000 miles. This was one of the most powerful storms ever, generating waves of over 100 feet high, the highest waves ever reported in the North Atlantic Ocean. As the storm moved west, it sent 30-foot waves smashing at President Bush's home in Maine. When the President returned to the U.S., he had to go to Maine to oversee the repair of his home.

In March 1997, President Bill Clinton invited Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat to the White House to discuss problems concerning Jerusalem. While Arafat was in route to Washington, powerful tornados ripped through seven states and brought record flooding to the Ohio River. Clinton's home state of Arkansas bore the brunt of the storm with 13 counties declared a disaster area.

On March 4, 1997, the New York Times front-page article was headlined, "President Clinton Rebukes Israel.” An adjacent article related the devastation caused in Arkansas. It's headline: "In Storm's Wake: Grief and Shock."

In June 2001, President George W. Bush sent CIA director George Tenet to Israel to try and broker a cease-fire between the Israelis and the Palestinians and to implement the Mitchell Report, which was, again, an "even-handed" attempt to "stop the violence." (It must be remembered that 99.99% of the violence is begun from Arafat's side. Israel is absolutely desperate to see the violence stop. However, she must attempt to protect her own citizens when they are attacked, which is another story.)

This was the Bush administration's first real involvement in the Middle East. The Mitchell Report and the Tenet plan was to get Israel to stop all construction in the settlements in the Biblical areas of Judea and Samaria (which God has promised to restore to Israel. See Ezekiel 38-39). In return, President Bush hoped that the Palestinians would stop their war against Israel.

On Friday, June 8, the CIA director hosted talks in Israel between senior Israeli and Palestinian security officials. While these talks were in session - June 8 to 9 - one of the greatest rainfalls in the history of the United States occurred in eastern Texas. The two events happened simultaneously. In a 24-hour period, over 28 inches of rain fell in the Houston area. In fact, between June 5-11, three feet of rain fell on the area. (The Tenet plan has since completely broken down and the suicide bombers, drive-by shootings, and mortar attacks against Israel's cities are in full swing.)

The rain was the product of tropical storm Allison, which formed within one day in the Gulf of Mexico - highly unusual. This storm then headed into Texas east of Houston and broke up as a storm system. The remnants drifted to the north of Houston and circled around the city before sliding back south to the Gulf. The storm then reformed into a tropical storm, which began to unleash incredible torrents of rain starting Friday evening and into Saturday.

The destruction in Houston was catastrophic. An estimated 20,000 homes and businesses were destroyed or damaged, along with possibly 50,000 automobiles and trucks. The city was closed for three days. Twenty-eight counties in Texas were declared a disaster area along with 14 parishes in Louisiana. The damage done to southeast Texas was unprecedented. President Bush was at his ranch in Crawford, Texas at the time of the flooding. He declared the 28 counties in Texas a federal disaster area while he was in Texas.

This was the third time since the Madrid Peace Process began that a sitting president's state has been the location of a powerful and damaging storm, occurring at the exact time the president was involved with Israel and the Covenant Land.

The UN: the Arab’s Latest Instrument of Choice for Israel’s Demise

The UN is preparing a World Conference Against Racism to begin August 30, 2001 in Durban, South Africa. If the Arab delegations have their way, the conference will be an Israel-bashing instrument which exceeds anything yet seen in the UN. The Arab delegates are preparing resolutions harsher than the 1975 UN resolution (that was repealed in 1991 after Israel was hit with scuds) that classified Zionism as a form of racism and discrimination.

"Their aim is to delegitimize the Jewish people through both the resolutions and the terminology," says Israel's Deputy Foreign Minister Michael Melchior. (Jerusalem Post, July 13, 2001)

Melchior says that much of this new anti-Semitism emanates from the Arab world where it has existed for a long time, and now is bonding with the historic roots of European anti-Semitism that spawned the anti-Semitic Crusades, the Inquisition, the pogroms in Eastern Europe and ultimately the Holocaust.

Melchior said that the new anti-Semitism is constantly intensifying and being disseminated using new technology to an increasingly wide public. Indeed, have you ever noticed that one never hears an Arab leader in any part of the world speak a single positive word about Israel? Not in the papers, radio or TV.

"In Arab countries where the people do not have access to information from the free world, the message is repeated endlessly and its impact will remain for decades. It is a poison which is being planted every day in a new generation," Melchior said, noting that the campaign is now being joined by non-Arab nations. (Ibid., June 26, 2001)

"It has a different power, a different strength than anything we've seen before," he said. There is an increasing trend on the part of human rights organizations in the West to delegitimize Zionism, the State of Israel, and the Jewish people as a whole."

The influential South African President Thabo Mbeki told Israel's Prime Minister Ariel Sharon that there was nothing he could do about the anti-Israel program being planned for the conference to be hosted by his nation. However, Secretary of State Colin Powell says he may boycott the conference if the "Zionism is Racism" push is not halted. (Ibid., July 1, 2001)

A preparatory conference for this World Conference Against Racism was held in Teheran, Iran, of all places. (Israeli military intelligence continually point out in article after article that Iran is the mother of all world terrorist sources.) In Teheran, the representatives could not come to agreement on the exact wording of the anti-Israel resolutions they wish to adopt in the South Africa conference, so they are planning another pre-conference at the end of July in Geneva.

The current Teheran draft is blatantly anti-Israel and anti-Semitic and absolutely original. In what the Institute of the World Jewish Congress calls a "stunning display of verbal acrobatics," the proposed draft says that Zionism [the return of the Jews over the last century to the Holy Land] is the same thing as anti-Semitism!

This double-talk, says Melchior, is far worse than the "Zionism equals racism" concept that the UN General Assembly passed in 1975. "In Durban," he said, "Israel is being presented as the embodiment of all evil, the antithesis of all that is worthy and humane. Israel is being portrayed as the new Antichrist."

For example, Clause 54 from the proposed texts speak of the need to combat anti-Semitism [Oh, that it would!] and Islamophobia as intrinsic to opposing all forms of racism. The draft of Clause 55 reflects deep concern at the worldwide increase in anti-Semitism and "the increase of racist practices of Zionism…as well as the emergence of racial and violent movements based on racism and discriminatory ideas, in particular, the Zionist movement, which is based on racial superiority."

Another clause states: "We are convinced that combating anti-Semitism, Islamophobia and Zionist practices against Semitism is integral and intrinsic to opposing all forms of racism…"

In Clause 25, there is a specific reference to Israeli settlement activity. In a section entitled, "Ethnic cleansing, genocide, slavery, and similar crimes," the proposed text reads: "We affirm that a foreign occupation founded on settlements, its laws based on racial discrimination, with the aim of continuing domination of the occupied territory, as well as its practices, which consist of reinforcing a total military blockage, isolating towns, cities and villages under occupation from each other, totally contradict the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and constitute a serious violation of international human rights and humanitarian law, a new kind of apartheid, a crime against humanity and a serious threat to international peace and security." (Ibid., July13, 2001)

Melchior challenges this description of settlements being crimes against humanity. "If building an apartment in Gilo [a section of Jewish Jerusalem] is a crime against humanity, then the term has no meaning," says Melchior. "One can agree or disagree regarding Israeli settlement policy. One can agree or disagree about Israeli policy in the territories. But is Israeli settlement policy really the most heinous and awful crime against humanity currently being committed on the face of the earth? If everything is a crime against humanity, then nothing is a crime against humanity."

Leftist Knesset member, Naomi Chazan, describes Israel's international relations as consisting of three circles which should be kept separate:

1. The first circle represents the government of Israel.

2. The second circle relates to the legitimization of the State of Israel and Zionism - Jews returning to their ancient homeland.

3. The third has to do with Judaism and anti-Semitism.

Chazan says the Teheran draft has combined all of these circles. Chazan accepts the legitimacy of disagreeing with any government and its policies. She says, "I am very critical of the policies of the government of Israel, but not of the legitimacy of the State of Israel or Zionism, and I cannot condone or accept attacks on Judaism." Ibid.)

Foreign Minister Shimon Peres, the ultimate optimist, says this period reminds him of the dark periods of history when the Jewish people were under threat of annihilation. "Today, Israel is the only member state of the United Nations to whose destruction three other members - Iran, Iraq, and Libya - are committed," he observed.

Along with the influence of Islam in the UN is the growing power of Europe which is very sympathetic to the Arab cause. One reason for this is that Islam is the fastest-growing religion on the European continent, and nearly 20 million people in European Union countries identify themselves as Muslims, according to an American Jewish Congress publication. (Ibid., July 13, 2001)

Furthermore, it behooves us as born-again believers throughout the world to take note of the increasing intensity of Islam's radical nationalism which is turning ever more destructive and violent. Islam is the main source of terrorism around the world.

Over the last decade, many, if not most, Israelis believed they could make peace with the Palestinians. Now it is excruciatingly clear that this has become an existential conflict where the radical Islamics want no compromise and solution. Israel must GO, completely, totally, utterly. Israel is fighting for her life.

The immediate cause of this upsurge in anti-Semitism is the ongoing intifada, [read Palestinian War Against Israel]. One source in the Foreign Ministry says it has set Israel back at least ten years. Former Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Dore Gold explains, "Weakening Israel's international position weakens Israel's negotiating position in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict."

The UN, comprising 189 nations, is an instrument that is closing in on the State of Israel. Its Arab Moslem members have tried to militarily destroy Israel for 50 years, but to no avail. Now, because of their numbers (280 million, not including the hundreds of millions of non-Arab Moslems in the world) and their billions of barrels of oil, they find that they and their friends wield great power in the UN.

Arafat wanted a freeze of all house construction in Israeli settlements written into the Oslo settlements. Having failed there, he has been able to raise the issue on the international arena through his intifada. What they couldn't achieve in the bilateral discussions [starting with the Oslo talks], they plan to achieve at the UN where Israel is at a disadvantage.

If Israel is effectively excommunicated from the international community, it would have serious political and economic implications for Israel. A pariah-like Israel would be isolated and cut off from international economic cooperation and commercial trade. For a tiny country like Israel, this would be disaster.

Jewish organizations around the world are alarmed at this resurrection of anti-Semitic attacks originating within the UN. Early in July, Melchior convened a conference in London of some 60 Jewish leaders from around the world to discuss the Teheran proposals and how best to lobby against them, and Melchior is hopeful that somehow the drafts can be changed.

So far, the U.S., Australia and Sweden, along with UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan have expressed reservations regarding the anti-Israeli bias.

We as watchmen on the walls have a real challenge before us as we intercede in behalf of Israel at this upcoming conference. As you pray for the well-being of Israel, you are also praying for the welfare of your own nation. For the Lord is not a man that He should lie. He has said of Israel, "I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you."

Could it be a Coincidence?

He who touches you touches the apple of My eye. Zech. 2:8

The United States has tried for many years to be "even-handed" as mediator between the two fighting peoples - Israel and the Palestinians. But certainly, from the Israeli perspective, the U.S. and Europe are far from being fair in their even-handedness. They are demanding of Israel standards that no other nation could or would sustain.

To the world, the Palestinian attackers and the Israeli victims have equal status. The more intense the intifada, the greater the world clamors for a brokered peace between the two fighting, equally guilty sides.

In doing so, the nations pressure Israel to see what she will offer in order to persuade the Palestinians to stop the attacks. Meanwhile, the world demands that Israel not defend herself against attacks, because "that only causes a further spiral of violence". Of course, Israelis know that the more the nations pressure Israel to placate the Palestinians, the more the Arabs will continue their offensive, as it pays well to do so.

The New King James version says that Jerusalem will be a stone that will cut in pieces whoever picks it up. Zech. 12:3

With this thought, we offer a question: Does God use natural phenomena to reveal his will and his purposes in this generation? One writer believes so and we present his views for your consideration.

In 1991, President George H. Bush initiated the Madrid Peace talks in order to try to negotiate a settlement between Israel and the Palestinians. While Bush was opening the conference in Madrid on October 31, a storm, which came to be known as "the perfect storm," struck his home in Maine.

According to meteorologists, a "perfect storm" occurs once every 100 years. This storm formed in the North Atlantic and headed west for 1000 miles. This was one of the most powerful storms ever, generating waves of over 100 feet high, the highest waves ever reported in the North Atlantic Ocean. As the storm moved west, it sent 30-foot waves smashing at President Bush's home in Maine. When the President returned to the U.S., he had to go to Maine to oversee the repair of his home.

In March 1997, President Bill Clinton invited Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat to the White House to discuss problems concerning Jerusalem. While Arafat was in route to Washington, powerful tornados ripped through seven states and brought record flooding to the Ohio River. Clinton's home state of Arkansas bore the brunt of the storm with 13 counties declared a disaster area.

On March 4, 1997, the New York Times front-page article was headlined, "President Clinton Rebukes Israel.” An adjacent article related the devastation caused in Arkansas. It's headline: "In Storm's Wake: Grief and Shock."

In June 2001, President George W. Bush sent CIA director George Tenet to Israel to try and broker a cease-fire between the Israelis and the Palestinians and to implement the Mitchell Report, which was, again, an "even-handed" attempt to "stop the violence." (It must be remembered that 99.99% of the violence is begun from Arafat's side. Israel is absolutely desperate to see the violence stop. However, she must attempt to protect her own citizens when they are attacked, which is another story.)

This was the Bush administration's first real involvement in the Middle East. The Mitchell Report and the Tenet plan was to get Israel to stop all construction in the settlements in the Biblical areas of Judea and Samaria (which God has promised to restore to Israel. See Ezekiel 38-39). In return, President Bush hoped that the Palestinians would stop their war against Israel.

On Friday, June 8, the CIA director hosted talks in Israel between senior Israeli and Palestinian security officials. While these talks were in session - June 8 to 9 - one of the greatest rainfalls in the history of the United States occurred in eastern Texas. The two events happened simultaneously. In a 24-hour period, over 28 inches of rain fell in the Houston area. In fact, between June 5-11, three feet of rain fell on the area. (The Tenet plan has since completely broken down and the suicide bombers, drive-by shootings, and mortar attacks against Israel's cities are in full swing.)

The rain was the product of tropical storm Allison, which formed within one day in the Gulf of Mexico - highly unusual. This storm then headed into Texas east of Houston and broke up as a storm system. The remnants drifted to the north of Houston and circled around the city before sliding back south to the Gulf. The storm then reformed into a tropical storm, which began to unleash incredible torrents of rain starting Friday evening and into Saturday.

The destruction in Houston was catastrophic. An estimated 20,000 homes and businesses were destroyed or damaged, along with possibly 50,000 automobiles and trucks. The city was closed for three days. Twenty-eight counties in Texas were declared a disaster area along with 14 parishes in Louisiana. The damage done to southeast Texas was unprecedented. President Bush was at his ranch in Crawford, Texas at the time of the flooding. He declared the 28 counties in Texas a federal disaster area while he was in Texas.

This was the third time since the Madrid Peace Process began that a sitting president's state has been the location of a powerful and damaging storm, occurring at the exact time the president was involved with Israel and the Covenant Land.